Prieur’s 2006 Beaune Clos de la Feguine displays bright lemon, narcissus, lanolin, and vanilla on the nose. Fatter and fuller than its citrus aromas led me to expect, it lingers with peachy richness, persistent notes of oak, but also a hint of chalky mineral dimension that may take on more importance as it is followed in bottle for 2-3 years. The Chardonnay vines here – covering around one third of the site – are still young.
Harvest began here September 20, and oenologist Nadine Gublin (who recently added wine making direction at Brocard in Chablis to her duties) insisted their Chardonnay was not really ripe before them – even though its evolution was rapid – and that very little triage was necessary. Malo-lactic transformation was exceedingly protracted, and some wines were not finished even in November, 2007, when I last tasted them. The entire collection was rather obviously marked by their (40-100%) new wood; less so by its routinely over-14% alcohol.
Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700.